Quotes of the day

posted at 9:31 pm on July 29, 2012 by Allahpundit

A top Mitt Romney foreign policy aide on Sunday said the GOP presidential candidate would back an Israeli military strike on Iran to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.

“If Israel has to take action on its own, in order to stop Iran from developing that capability, the governor would respect that decision,” said Romney adviser on Middle East affairs Dan Senor in a briefing with reporters, according to media reports.

***

Mitt Romney on Sunday declared Jerusalem to be the capital of Israel and said he would seek to move the U.S. embassy there from Tel Aviv as president if the Israeli government ascents.

“A nation has the capacity to choose its own capital city, and Jerusalem is Israel’s capital,” the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said in an interview on CNN, conducted in Jerusalem. “I think it’s long been the policy to ultimately have our embassy in the nation’s capital of Jerusalem.”…

“I would follow the same policy we have had in the past, our embassy would be in the capital, and the timing of that is something I would want to work out with the government,” Romney said.

***

While traveling in Israel on a foreign policy “listening tour,” Mitt Romney said he’s not a foreign policy wimp, which is how he’s depicted on the latest cover of Newsweek.

“If I worried about what the media said I wouldn’t get much sleep, and I sleep pretty well,” Romney told CBS News’ Jan Crawford during an interview Sunday in Jerusalem…

Crawford asked Romney about his campaign which has focused on the former Mass. governor and Bain Capital founder’s business experience. “Would you say that foreign policy is the area where you’re weakest?” she asked. Romney invoked another former governor-turned-president, Ronald Reagan, as a model.

“I would say that foreign policy is a place where intelligence, resolve, clarity and confidence in cause is of extraordinary importance,” he said. “Ronald Reagan was one of our great foreign policy presidents. He did not come from the Senate, he did not come from the foreign policy world; he was a governor. But his resolve, his clarity of purpose, his intelligence, his capacity to deal with complex issues and solve tough problems served him extremely well.

***

An Israeli newspaper reported Sunday that the Obama administration’s top security official has briefed Israel on U.S. plans for a possible attack on Iran, seeking to reassure it that Washington is prepared to act militarily should diplomacy and sanctions fail to pressure Tehran to abandon its nuclear enrichment program.

A senior Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential talks, said the article in the Haaretz daily was incorrect.

Haaretz said National Security Adviser Tom Donilon laid out the plans before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a dinner at a visit to Israel earlier this month. It cited an unidentified senior American official as the source of its report, which came out as presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney was telling Israel he would back an Israeli military strike against Iran.

— Romney would be a new president in 2013, which could plausibly be the year for a preventive attack. He will be inexperienced, and his national security team will be new and potentially inexperienced as well. The learning curve on Iran is steep, and the Iranian regime knows it. The Obama team is deeply knowledgeable, appropriately cynical about Iranian intentions, and has had the time and confidence to make course corrections.

— Romney, by all accounts, is uninterested in inheriting the mantle of President George W. Bush, who invaded two Muslim countries and lost popularity and credibility as a result. Romney, despite his rhetoric, is more of a pragmatist than Bush, and far more cautious. An attack on Iran is an incautious act, one that even Bush rejected.

— The unilateral use of force in the Middle East for a liberal Democrat like Obama is a credential; for a conservative Republican like Romney, it could be an albatross. I argued in a previous column that Romney is more likely than Obama to oversee a revitalized Middle East peace process. That’s because conservatives are better positioned to make peace; liberals are generally better positioned to launch preventive strikes at the nuclear programs of rogue nations. We know that U.S. voters, and world leaders, allow Obama extraordinary leeway when it comes to deadly drone strikes, precisely because of his politics, character and background. (We are talking about a man, after all, who won the Nobel Peace Prize while ordering the automated killing of suspected Muslim terrorists around the world.) Romney will get no comparative slack.

— Obama has done a superior job of building an international sanctions coalition against Iran. He has even received some cooperation from China and Russia.

***

I believe that the enduring alliance between the State of Israel and the United States of America is more than a strategic alliance: it is a force for good in the world. America’s support of Israel should make every American proud. We should not allow the inevitable complexities of modern geopolitics to obscure fundamental touchstones. No country or organization or individual should ever doubt this basic truth: A free and strong America will always stand with a free and strong Israel.

And standing by Israel does not mean with military and intelligence cooperation alone.

We cannot stand silent as those who seek to undermine Israel, voice their criticisms. And we certainly should not join in that criticism. Diplomatic distance in public between our nations emboldens Israel’s adversaries.

By history and by conviction, our two countries are bound together. No individual, no nation, no world organization, will pry us apart.

***

[I]f the Republican left little doubt about his ardor for Netanyahu, the prime minister was glad to return the favor.

“We’ve known each other for many decades, since you were a young man, but for some reason, you still look young,” he said, prompting a laugh from Romney. “You’ve been a personal friend of mine and a strong friend of the state of Israel, and that’s why it’s a pleasure to welcome you here.”…

The moment was reminscent, if less gushing, of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy all but endorsing Obama four years ago when the then-senator came to Paris during a similar summer foreign tour.

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Gary Johnson is the non-partisan choice, the American choice. Obama and Romney represent the European far left and far right. Screw them, vote for the most qualified candidate, the only successful governor running for President, Gary Johnson.

FloatingRock on July 30, 2012 at 2:49 AM

I think you are sincere, but there is no way that Gary Johnson is representative of the views of the majority of the American people. He just is not. I do not know what America you are living in, but I live in rural Indiana.. We have seen coal miners lose their jobs..we are in a drought the likes of which no one has ever seen before and we have worries and concerns about everything from the price of gas to Iran.

Gary Johnson is totally unknown to 90% of the people around here and most of the people who actually know who he is, think he is a joke.

I’ve always wondered why the GOP Elite and our “fiscal Conservatives” (ahem) are trying so hard to alienate the largest political ideology in this country…Conservatives.

kingsjester on July 30, 2012 at 7:01 AM

I do not think that is entirely true..I think that there are a lot more conservatives in the GOP than there are in the other party, that is for sure and by and large they are the largest group in the party.

I do not think the problem with Palin has anything to do with going after women or Reagan conservatives..I think many of them resent her because they felt she did not do her homework and she made them look bad and they do not like that.

They have no problem with conservatives like Jim DeMint because he is really good at handling himself with the press and interviews. He is hard to rattle and he articulates the conservative message with ease. The liberals can treat him like a nazi, but they can not treat him like a stupid nazi.

I think they don’t like anyone keeping an eye on them and expecting them to do what they said they would do when they were running for office. As for Palin, they could have done a lot more than they did to help her, but they didn’t. There is plenty of evidence that people on “our” side set her up to look bad. I don’t want to continue that thread from yesterday, I only made two comments on it, and ran like you. I just think if we “conservatives” are able to drag Mitt Romney’s butt over the finish line we are going to have to watch him like a hawk.

It is my firm and unwavering conviction that Barry Obama is a SCOAMF and I would not vote for him if you held a gun to my daughter’s head. (BTW, I’d take the gun from you, shove it up your a$$ and pull the trigger five times).
But speeches like Mitt’s just help me accept that my vote for him is worthwhile and so much more than just an expression of my hate for the corroded tin god of socialism.

“We’ve known each other for many decades, since you were a young man, but for some reason, you still look young,” he said, prompting a laugh from Romney. “You’ve been a personal friend of mine and a strong friend of the state of Israel, and that’s why it’s a pleasure to welcome you here.”…

That’s what clean living and a good, happy marriage and family will do for you.

Anyway, Mitt was awesome in Israel and struck just the right themes. He looked and sounded strong and presidential.

Looking forward to President Romney in just a few short months. The next four years will bring a huge turnaround for the country.

Flora Duh, I’m disappointed you would resort to obscene insults like that. Honestly, though I have teased you in the past, I didn’t think you were that trashy. Apparently I misjudged you, as I thought you were better than that.

6. She supported a Brokered Convention – which would have left the GOP without sufficient time to mount an effective campaign against a sitting President who has the support of 90% of the media. Her support for a brokered convention was so brain dead it renders her a person of questionable judgement.

7. Even at this late date, she has yet to endorse Romney. She is not a team player in a team sport.

8. Her choice for VP is Allen West, who is not qualified and lacks the discipline to refrain from making extreme statements which make him an easy target for ridicule. This too speaks to poor judgement.

9. Her image among the majority of Americans is the one produced by her interviews with Couric and Gibson rather than her sterling performance at the 2008 GOP Convention.

10. She is too divisive.

11. She is the GOP’s Barack Obama. The adulation isn’t warranted. Their most ardent supporters are out of their minds.

Hey Flora..If you read this- have something silly for you. Is there a way to send it through your name/link?

I havent been around lately-been meaning to catch you.
Have a good Monday..stay cool.

bazil9 on July 30, 2012 at 8:23 AM

Are you on Twitter or do you know anyone who is that could send it to me?

Forget about staying cool, thunder and lightning rolling in so the trick will be to stay dry.

Flora Duh, I’m disappointed you would resort to obscene insults like that. Honestly, though I have teased you in the past, I didn’t think you were that trashy. Apparently I misjudged you, as I thought you were better than that.

bluegill on July 30, 2012 at 8:30 AM

LOL!! Look who’s taking offense.

I just read a couple of pages from yesterday’s Palin thread, you’ve got no claim to the moral high ground Toots.

Or – I could always post a couple of your comments about Rick Santorum and his supporters, including Ed Morrissey, if you’d like.

If you thought that Mitt, you wouldn’t have run from him, diss him as a conservative.

The one thing I can’t stand with Mitt (among others) is his insistance of bringing up Reagan, when he despised the man, and distanced himself from him as much as possible, even to the point of becoming an independent.

At least in this one area be honest Mitt…you were no fan of Reagan, and your policies now reflect that.

Is being a “team player” mean that you do whatever you are told to do? Even if it hurts the team?
Have you ever been on a real team, a competitive team, ever see everyone get along? Every one sing kum-by-ya?

The fact is, people like Sarah hold people like Mitt accountable…she in not enamored, doesn’t think he is some prophet, doesn’t think he is perfect…and doesn’t think, as most of us, that he is a conservative.

Now you may like his liberal policies, his liberal background, but most of the conservatives do not…and we certainly are not like sheep that just follow whatever a politician says, and embraces whatever ideology he states…that is how we have gotten into this mess.
With people like you who are “team” players, in an arena that isn’t a sport, sport.

The Obama team is deeply knowledgeable, appropriately cynical about Iranian intentions, and has had the time and confidence to make course corrections.

HUH???

It was Obama who wanted to make nice with Ahmadinejad during the 2008 campaign, and he was sharply criticized for that by even Hillary Clinton, who later became his Secretary of State. Obama didn’t lift a finger to help the Iranian protesters against Ahmadinejad in the fall of 2009.

Obama has done a superior job of building an international sanctions coalition against Iran. He has even received some cooperation from China and Russia.

Sure he has. Obama told Vlad’s sidekick that he would have more “flexibility” (read wimpiness) after the election, and Mad Vlad must be rubbing his hands with glee.

Just because Romney would be in his first year if he is elected and Israel attacks Iran in 2013 doesn’t mean that he would be any weaker than the “experienced” Obama. President George W. Bush had reacted strongly to the 9/11 attacks in the first year of his Presidency in 2001. Iran was so afraid of Ronald Reagan that they released the hostages on his inauguration day in 1981. JFK had to react to the Cuban missile crisis in the first year of his Presidency in 1961. Harry Truman had to make the decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan during the first year of his Presidency in 1945.

Obama’s “experience” works against him on foreign policy. America’s enemies KNOW Obama is weak–they don’t know about Romney.

6. She supported a Brokered Convention – which would have left the GOP without sufficient time to mount an effective campaign against a sitting President who has the support of 90% of the media. Her support for a brokered convention was so brain dead it renders her a person of questionable judgement.

So bcs of this, in your opinion, we shouldn’t try to fix the GOP? Bcs that is why the Tea Party was formed. The GOP isn’t doing it’s job. And it need to be FIXED. GUTTED.

7. Even at this late date, she has yet to endorse Romney. She is not a team player in a team sport.

So when your teammates are acting like total d-bags you just ‘go along’?
That is why the GOP sucks.

8. Her choice for VP is Allen West, who is not qualified and lacks the discipline to refrain from making extreme statements which make him an easy target for ridicule. This too speaks to poor judgement.

I’ve watched Allen West make some of those extreme statements you’re talking about. He speaks the truth. Guess that’s not popular. That’s another reason the GOP sucks. They play politics & don’t tell it like it is.

9. Her image among the majority of Americans is the one produced by her interviews with Couric and Gibson rather than her sterling performance at the 2008 GOP Convention.

So that won’t ever change? You’re not going to help change that when you know that’s not who she is?

10. She is too divisive.

The truth spoken clearly IS divisive.
I agree with that.

11. She is the GOP’s Barack Obama. The adulation isn’t warranted. Their most ardent supporters are out of their minds.

I’m not head of heels in love with her, but I think she’s what we need. Of course, I’ve often been told I tell the truth too bluntly.Guess some people don’t want to hear the bold, unadulterated truth, which she should actually do more of.

12. She has far more to gain from an Obama win than a Romney win.

Basilsbest on July 30, 2012 at 8:37 AM

I can see that. But I actually think she loves her country more than what she can get out of that situation. And even she knows Romney would be better than Obama.
I still think supporting Romney is better than not.
But not by a whole lot.
I’m on the fence when it comes to what he will do for us.
I often wonder if we really don’t need another 4 years of Bammy.
Bcs Romney cannot do what needs to be done. Nor will he.
Even under Reagan, things could not get done that needed done. Which is a return to Constitutional principles.
And I actually NEVER forsee that happening unless the populace gets as pi$$ed off as they did in 1776.

And I actually NEVER forsee that happening unless the populace gets as pi$$ed off as they did in 1776.

Badger40 on July 30, 2012 at 10:45 AM

And that will never happen bcs we live in a country & in times where people have turned into whining, weak, dependent little b!tche$ who can’t even wipe their own a$$e$ without help.

I watched what happened in my state of ND when the populace voted to continue being SLAVES to the state when they voted to keep property taxes instead of voting for the FREEDOM to actually own their own property.
Instead, North Dakotans (who are really nothing but right leaning little socialists anyway), believed the stupid ignorant lies that were pandered to them by BOTH sides of the political spectrum here.
And it was disappointing to never hear the truth of it in any ads by those for the measure. Perhaps they didn’t have enough $$. IDK.
But it is things like that that proves to me Americans don’t really want freedom.
They want a safety net bcs they are scared to be really free.
This is no longer the people who forged ahead into the wilderness & frontier to found communities out of nothing.
People have become pu$$ie$ & the majority are cowards.
That is why America has gone into the toilet for over 100 years.
And it is why this experiment of our Republic will die.
Bcs no one is playing by the rules & the cowards stand around, afraid to make their fellow citizens follow the rules.
Instead, we all just stand around & let them bend the rules & just b!tch about it.
So many don’t vote & so many don’t have a sense of service for their community.
This is why America is dying.